Sports Talk, Straight Talk

Inside the Shark Cage, Vol. 52

Quite the absolute annihilation, destruction and obliterationtonight as the Sharks pummeled the Calgary Flames 9-1. Nine players had multi-point nights, and eight different players scored a goal. Joe Pavelski led the pack with four points (1 goal, 3 assists).

Coach Todd McLellan’s decision to move Ryane Clowe down one line and bring Manny Malhotra up one line might be the best idea of the season.

He wanted secondary scoring, and boy did he get it. Only two goals came from the top line. Scott Nichol and Jed Ortmeyer both amassed three points, and linemate Clowe added two more for a total of eight points. I never thought I’d see the third line do that — not even on their best night.

Maybe Devin Setoguchi breaking his scoring drought opened the flood gates for the rest of the team. It was Ortmeyer’s first goal in 28 games and Nichol’s first goal since November 17. Let’s hope they save some of this firepower for the playoffs.

The second line notched eight points (3 goals, 5 assists). This is an oddity because Joe Pavelski and Manny Malhotra are both natural centers. They’re playing off each other so well, though. Pavs takes faceoffs on the right side; Malhotra takes them on the left side. Add in their domination of the faceoff circle, and the second line is almost guaranteed to start with the puck.

This is what happens when an unstoppable force and an immovable object have a baby. (From SJSHARKS.com)

Only four players failed to get a point, but they contributed as well. Torrey Mitchell fought Rene Bourque late in the game, Jody Shelley had four hits, Marc-Edouard Vlasic was a +2 and Kent Huskins was a +3.

This was the worst I’ve seen the Flames in a long time. I can’t tell you how much I love pounding Alberta teams into the dirt. Granted the Flames played the previous night, but this was a team who gave up early on. Goalie Mikka Kiprusoff became Mikka Kovalev with his lack of effort.

By the way, the Oilers got crushed 6-0, so Alberta lost tonight by a total of 15-1. That’s just plain redonkulous.

It’s about time the Sharks crushed someone like this; they’ve usually been on the wrong side of these games. Unfortunately, the Sharks couldn’t score one more, much to the chagrin of the fans who chanted “we-want-10!”

Other Notes

Hit-O-Meter: SJ 34 CGY 30; Brad Staubitz led with seven. Bitz also fought Brandon Prust early on in the game.

Behind the Scenes

My name is Ray, and this is my Sharks blog. I’ve branched off from doing all sports to focusing on the Sharks this year. I give you the perspective of a fan with emotion and honesty; I also try and use a professional setup for consistency. There’s a small possibility I may post a blog on one of my other teams, or re-post an article I write elsewhere. So, sit back and just be a fan of the game.

I’d also like to reach out to Sharks fans, hockey fans or anyone else. Please leave a comment and let me know what you thought of a post or any input you’d like to add. It’s encouraging to receive any feedback or know people got something out of it. So tell your friends, post my URL on your facebook status, whatever. You can also link your blog by using comments, too. Help build a community!